


Two Sides Of The Same Coin [On Hiatus]

by orphan_account



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, Friends to Lovers, Growth, Harry Potter Next Generation, Hogwarts, Insecurity, M/M, Minor Character Death, Multi, Post-Canon, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-29
Updated: 2015-03-31
Packaged: 2018-03-20 01:03:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3630858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Mate, we were made for each other. You're in this with me for the long haul," Albus said gripping both of Scorpius' shoulders, flashing the most charismatic grin he could muster. Scorpius Malfoy could feel an odd warmth bloom throughout his body, deciding to throw caution to the wind and let Albus into his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Albus Severus Potter was the golden child of the family, or so he led them to believe.

The spitting image of a young Harry Potter, but (in Albus' opinion) blessed with 20/20 vision that allowed him to forgo the famous Potter full-moon glasses, and more athletically built than his father had ever been from a combination of his parent's love of quidditch and his grandmother's habit of over-feeding loved ones. Though the Potters were the picture of a loving family, as the second child he had to find a unique way to stand out when compared to his raucous older brother James and his sweet princess of a sister Lily, so he decided to be the "nice" one. Always courteous, always patient, always a delightful surprise. Many would say he was a true gentleman, except not really. What he was really doing was observing how to stay on top by gauging reactions, testing theories, and constantly altering his orientations to whatever was favorable. Through doing so Albus learned a great deal about the people around him and how far gentle phrases and handsome smiles could get him. By no means did he intend to be malicious through his actions (Harry and Ginny raised him to have firm beliefs in kindness, honesty, and humility), he was just opportunistic and excellent at people pleasing. Nobody could fault him for enjoying the way his parent's praised his maturity and thoughtfulness. Albus figured if he was making his parents proud, his siblings turn altruism into a competition, and everybody else content, there was no harm in what he did to get what he wanted. The only flaw Albus really found himself to be concerned with is how indecisive and emotional he could become after caring about the opinions of others for too long. His Dad quelled his Slytherin-phobia right before he had to leave on the Hogwarts Express, but confusion and fear always weighed heavily on Albus' heart because of the reputation he built for hiding emotions from peers. 

 

***

 

Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy was the timid, black sheep of wizarding society and he knew it. 

While he wore the traditional Malfoy look of blonde hair, pale skin, and silver eyes well (a common joke among matrons was that his other name was actually "adorable"), he never once felt proud to be a Malfoy. Then again it was hard defining himself in a household as polarizing as Malfoy Manor. His grandfather Lucius tried to hammer in traditional wizard views on every subject imaginable (something about mud blots?) while his father fought back with more progressive (though under-informed) opinions that only cast muggles in a just slightly better light. In the end Scorpius fell in love with muggle culture after his grandmother Narcissa bought him an Ipad ( _"Because if muggle children can have such a powerful tool for entertainment and education, why can't my little scorpion have it too?" She cooed as she secretly smuggled him the present for his sixth birthday)_. An exceptionally intelligent and curious child, Scorpius made quick work of absorbing all and any knowledge he could from the internet: muggle sciences, culture, psychology, history, etc. His new found interests made him ecstatic and he gushed to anyone he could about all the wonder he felt, but the disapproving remarks and escalated father-son shouting matches taught Scorpius to hide his beliefs. In retrospect he knew that it was bad to accept this sort of treatment and might make him worse off in the future for it, but no amount of self-expression or information would hold his tears down as the Malfoy family fought among themselves over Scorpius' muggle love. Behind closed doors Scorpius rebelled in every little way he could get away with and resolved to keep to himself his love of learning muggle topics, but he had developed a great sense of perception from his hobby. He knew that Grandmother Narcissa's stoicism was likely developed from a young age, Grandfather Lucius had a fear of large snakes and hissing noises, and the care his father took towards his torso was indicative of injury from observation. Detail-oriented did not begin to describe Scorpius Malfoy, but other than being able to act more swiftly than others and make creative stories he found little use in his skill, just amusement. Besides the many other things he blamed himself of, he was most disappointed in his lack of self-esteem. 

 

***

**First Year**

Albus decided to work his charms on his peers while everyone was excitedly chatting about school. No doubt he would be recognized for being Harry Potter's son, but a good amount of them didn't know about his little charade yet. Perhaps this year he'd find someone to chat to heart-to-heart that wasn't his dad or his ferret. Sitting alone on the Hogwarts Express, Scorpius kept his eyes glued to the passing scenery. Since his electronics were taken away ( _"Electronics don't work in the pre-historic world of Hogwarts," his father had playfully warned_ ) he began developing a fake narrative about the flora and fauna of Great Britain to keep himself entertained.

"But the deadliest of all creatures graze upon the fields of Britain," Scorpius warned his sleepy, white kitten Artemis, " _ovis aries_. Just terrible blight sheep are, killing the native grass populations and-" 

But an airy and melodious laugh cut Scorpius off before he blanched in embarrassment. To his horror Albus Potter had heard the entirety of Scorpius' narration, cursing himself for letting his guard down by pretending the door opening was just his luggage sliding in the overhead compartment.

"I'm really sorry to have made you stop, everywhere else was full and I didn't want to spend the whole ride with my cousin and the other girlies," Albus nonchalantly apologized, "You're Scorpius Malfoy, right? My name's Albus Potter, but just call me 'Al'."

Scorpius knew 'Al' was lying as Potter extended his hand towards him, _T_ _he end of the train is enchanted to make empty compartment for those who need it. What are you trying to do?_

He decided the best course of action would be to push him away by showing his honest intimidation. There was something about Potter that begged for attention, but the reason for it to come from Scorpius was a mystery. "Oh, but you wouldn't want to sit with me. It might look bad if you're seen near an ex-Death Eater's son," Scorpius said with his best impression of shame. He had also hoped the truth in his statement would also persuade Al to leave him alone.

Instead, Albus was immediately smitten by the sincerity and gentleness of Scorpius Malfoy. He had believed "Adorable" Malfoy was only a rumor until he had seen Scorpius make up stories for his cat, and expressed how abashed he was through a half-plea and his shimmering silver eyes. Overall he was just pleased to see someone who didn't have some sort of arrogant facade. His non-related peers had been firmly split between the star-struck who grew up learning the stories of the Man Who Lived (twice) and the pompous trying to impress Albus to ride off of Potter fame. Scorpius Malfoy was just a genuinely meek person and a pleasant change, in his opinion. Albus flashed a winning smile before replying, "I'm done people pleasing and looking good. Scoot over so we can play some exploding snaps, I'll buy you sweets from the trolley if you can beat me."

Scorpius was both confused and . . .thankful that someone actually wanted to be near him when he was both a Malfoy (a disliked family in wizarding society for the war that occurred before Scorpius was born) and just odd by any standards. If talking to a cat didn't scare him off, Scorpius didn't know what could. In the end he resigned to playing/beating Potter at Snaps, gorging himself on sweets (at least two of everything offered on the trolley was bought by Albus and Scorpius), and allowing himself to think that he and Al were becoming fast friends. After a while of discussing trivial muggle pop-culture with him and showing his gratitude for Albus' company by flicking food into Albus' mouth with near perfect accuracy, the conversation soon skewed into the subject Scorpius was dreading the most: Hogwarts.

"Blimey Scorp, your aim is amazing! You definitely need to try for Chaser when we can play Quidditch. You'll be in my House right?" Albus asked with an edge of uncertainty. James had told him almost all pure-bloods ended up in Slytherin, but he had high hopes that Scorpius would end up in Gryffindor after getting to know him better. Albus couldn't imagine how much nerve it took to be as big of a muggle admirer as Scorpius in such an exclusive pure-blood family as the Malfoys, but it must be enough to satisfy the ghost of Godric himself.

But Scorpius immediately looked downcast and mumbled, "The Sorting Hat will say Slytherin for sure. My dad said it barely grazed his head before saying so for him."

Albus was disheartened to hear the insecurity in his new friend's voice. It was one thing to be sheepish, but it sounded like Scorpius had completely resigned to a fate he loathed. "Nonsense, you could get into any House you want to. Slytherin's loss though 'cause you're brilliant. My dad said the Hat will care about your opinion too when you're sorted," Albus declared with confidence only his father could inspire in him. A small but serene smile grew on Scorpius' face as he lifted his head to meet Albus' emerald gaze, and Albus immediately gained a desire to create that same smile everyday.

***

The moment of truth came when "Malfoy, Scorpius" was called and a hush fell over the Great Hall as he made his way towards the stool. While making his short strides to his doom he registered the variety of reactions spread among the students. Girls whispered about how cute he was (Albus had helped him restyle his hair on the train, complaining that side swept bangs looked much nicer on him), boys stated their surprise that a boy their age could be so timid, older students assured each other that another Slytherin was on its way, Slytherins instinctively began smiling in his direction and preparing to clap. Seated upon the wooden stool in front of staff table, the aged hat sprinkled a few pieces of old ashes onto Scorpius' platinum hair as it was lowered.

"Sorry boy," Scorpius heard the Hat apologize quietly into his ear, "still got some left from a fiasco years ago. Now let's see, hmm? Such intellect! And a thirst for knowledge that would put Ravenclaw herself to shame. But what a kind heart you are! I see hard work and fidelity come almost naturally to you. . ."

"What? Nothing Slytherin-ish?" Scorpius thought in disbelief.

"I can see all your desires clear as day, and your only ambition is to make people happy. Wouldn't call that very cunning, now would you? No, but much more than anything else you are tenacious and brave. Not a wolf, but a lion in sheep's clothing. You belong in GRYFFINDOR!" Cried the Sorting Hat. The chatter amplified to more than anything Scorpius imagined it would as his new House gave him a moderate level of applause while the others discussed among themselves what just occurred. As uncomfortable as he felt to be the subject of mass debate Scorpius couldn't stop the grin that spread on his face when he saw Albus give him a wink and smirk on his way to the Gryffindor table. Once he found an empty space at the end of the table an older boy with messy black hair and graceful swagger sat with him, introducing himself as Albus' older brother.

"James Potter, pleasure to meet you. Saw that you and Al are getting along. I'm in third year and I don't know you very well yet, but I'll make sure no one bullies you in Gryffindor, yeah?" James said with friendly conviction. Scorpius began to wonder what he ever did to have the Potters act so nicely towards him. His year had a relatively small amount of students so it wasn't long before "Potter, Albus" was called up. The banter between Albus and the Sorting Hat was far less compliant than expected though.

"Please put me in Gryffindor," Albus pleaded in his head as soon as the Sorting Hat was placed.

"You're such a clever young man though!" The Sorting Hat countered, "Always calculating, always ambitious. As I've told your father before you: 'You could be great, you know, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that.'"     

A heated (albeit private) argument erupted between Albus and the Sorting Hat that had everyone silent, including Scorpius and James who could only direct concerned looks in their direction. After half an hour had passed the hat remarked with finality, "You have some nerve to drag it out for this long to deny your true calling."

"Then I guess I have enough nerve to be a Gryffindor," Albus smugly retorted. The Sorting Hat nearly shook off of Albus' head because of the thunderous laughter it roared throughout the Great Hall before calmly agreeing, "Fine, fine. There's only one type of student patient and audacious enough to do this to get what he wants-GRYFFINDOR!"

Finally making his way to the long desired seat at the Gryffindor table near Scorpius and his brother Albus let out a sigh of relief and complained about being hungry before getting berated with questions from James. "Were you having a nice chat with that musty old hat Al? It was so quiet in here, you could hear a pin drop in the dungeons! What was it telling you? Did someone cast confundus on you?"

"Dumb old hat told me the same thing it told Dad," Albus sharply replied, " 'Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness' or whatever. Barmy soot collector."

"I'd say," Scorpius nervously laughed, "it put me in Gryffindor with guys as great as you two." 

After Scorpius lowered his gaze, hoping his sad attempt at humor would be ignored/dispel Albus' irritation, James sent Albus an anguished look reserved for when they found injured animals. Even with the very little amount of time they had gotten to know each other Albus knew confidence was something that would need to be regularly instilled into his new (or at least hopeful candidate for) best friend.

"Mate, we were made for each other. You're in this with me for the long haul," Albus said gripping both of Scorpius' shoulders, flashing the most charismatic grin he could muster. Scorpius Malfoy could feel an odd warmth bloom throughout his body, deciding to throw caution to the wind and let Albus into his life.   


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey Mom and Dad,_

_I got into Gryffindor!!_

_James will say I had the longest hat stall in Hogwarts history, but I'm pretty sure Uncle Neville's still took longer. Everyone's been really nice to me so far (except James but that's to be expected), and I became friends with Scorpius Malfoy on the train. He's actually way better than Uncle Ron makes him out to be. I'll write back more if anything happens, but I just wanted to let you guys know that I got in._

_Love,_

_Albus Potter_

***

_Dearest Mother and Father,_

_I am sorry it might come as a shock to everyone at home, but I was sorted into Gryffindor. I hope it does not give Grandfather Lucius too much of a shock. To be fair, the Slytherin table looked ready to welcome me in, but the Gryffindors have been more than (if not equally) happy to have me. I believe the Sorting Hat called me a "lion in sheep's clothing"(?). I doubt that is a real proverb, but I trust its decision. After all, you two, and Grandfather Lucius and Grandmother Narcissa met in the houses you were assigned to. Also,_ _I met Albus Potter on the Hogwarts Express and he has been especially friendly to me, so Father can stop worrying about the Potter-Weasley clan bullying me._

_Sincerely,_

_Scorpius Malfoy_

*** 

Quite a stir of gossip swept over Hogwarts in the weeks since it became known that the sons of the former archenemies Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter were best friends. Though many students took an immediate liking to the addition of another Potter, many others began speculating the circumstances of the swift sorting of Scorpius into Gryffindor instead of the expected Slytherin. Many had taken to calling Scorpius "the little lion of Gryffindor" because of his unintimidating stature/demeanor. Whether it was to spite him or because of all the gossip on the subject of his cuteness his new friends made it their duty to comfort him about it/use the name whenever possible. And that was definitely a new experience for Scorpius; people who weren't forced to be in his company because their parents knew his, but chose to be his friends because they genuinely enjoyed being near him. However, an unexpected pair from his past came back to mortify him further. Two graceful, dark-skinned siblings carried an air of nobility with them as they made their way to the Gryffindor table. The sister had her arm linked with Rose Weasley's, both wore their sapphire Ravenclaw robes, but the sister kept whispering to Rose how especially resplendent she looked with her bright auburn hair styled into a french braid. The Slytherin brother's laid back demeanor dissolved as he excitedly greeted, "Good to see you again, Scoob! We were really surprised when Rose here told us you were in Gryffindor."

"Hello Hector, hello Dahlia," Scorpius sheepishly greeted, "Guys, these are the Zabini twins."  

"Scoob?" Everybody at the table said in unison, turning to face Scorpius as he shrank.

"Like Scooby-Doo, the scared cartoon dog from muggle children's television," Hector explained while patting an embarrassed Scorpius on the back, "It started when Dahlia and I met Scoob at peewee-"

"You never told me you did peewee," Albus mockingly accused Scorpius. 

"I quit after a year because I got asthma."

"Our mum wouldn't stop smoking at games," Hector apologized, "But to continue, we met at peewee quidditch. Our dads knew each other and we both played seeker so we started chatting in the middle of the game, mostly about kids things, as you do, while he started going on about cartoons the quaffle accidentally gets thrown at us because Dahlia is awful at sports-" an elbow flies into his side, everyone chuckles before he catches his breath and continues, "and Scoob just goes mental. It was an inflatable beach ball, but he screams and launches off his broom to push me out of the way. We were only a metre off the ground, but we both got sprained ankles and the lot of us almost died laughing. Afterwards 'Scooby' just seemed so fitting."

"Good to know your bravery extends to the kiddie pitch," James quipped to Scorpius, toasting him with his orange juice.

"Sorry we hadn't been able to see each other more since. Dad sends his love," Dahlia beamed, laying light pecks on both of Scorpius' flushed cheeks before lightly grimacing, "Mum doesn't, but you remember why. We picked up a present for you early because dad remembered you were going to be in our year."  

"Wait, when's your birthday?" Rose asked as she reclaimed her hold on Dahlia.

"Halloween, but I usually celebrate on November first to avoid making a big deal out of it."

Albus smirked, "Well it's settled then, we're going to make a big deal out of it this year!"

They all laughed at Scorpius' gentle protesting before Hector proclaimed,"I gotta book it, transfigurations first period. See you all in double potions!" and he left winking at the others as he made his way back to the Slytherin table.

Dahlia drawled, "Lucky us that Ravenclaws and Gryffindors have charms together first thing."

"You mean lucky Rose she'll have a class full of idiots to impress," Scorpius snorted.

"Well I am naturally better than everyone, I must admit." Rose declared haughtily to the jeers of her cousins and the laughter of everyone else.

Later Scorpius claimed to have forgotten a textbook in his room so that Albus would offer to accompany him back to their dorm. As soon as Albus has him cornered after they turn down the first corridor Scorpius knew he wanted an explanation for his discomfort. "Are you okay mate? You didn't seem too happy to have your 'old friends' see you," Albus tried to ask nonchalantly, but the worry seeped into his eyes as his brows were furrowed.

"What? Oh no, Hector and Dahlia are great when you get to know them. I mean, I've only hung out with them a few times at peewee. It's just that Mrs. Parkinson-Zabini isn't too kind to Malfoys. She's plenty civil to my mom, but pretends my father and his parents are nonexistent, or scum. Mr. Zabini and the twins are always apologizing when she turns her back. It's just another reminder that I was born a pariah, I get it all the time, it's okay."

"Hey, Scorp. You should be proud to be who you are-"

"Well I'm not. I love my parents and grandparents to death, but there are a lot of wizarding families in the world I'd rather be in before I would willingly choose to be a Malfoy."

"Even Weasley?" Albus joked.

Scorpius scoffed, "Even Potter." A shoving match then ensued between the two of them, but a huge sense of relief washed over Albus when he received an answer he didn't even know he wanted.  

***

A month went by of joyfully adolescent life for Albus and Scorpius, both having passed Madame Hooch's "Harry Potter Test" (' _if a first year is sufficiently talented enough they may play on the team'_ ) with Scorpius being inducted as back up seeker and Albus as a back up chaser. Although Professor Longbottom did dote on his godson in herbology, Albus truly found his calling in potions while Scorpius excelled (to everyone except Albus' astonishment) in muggle studies and defense against the dark arts.

"You'd think as a the child and grandchild of ex-Death Eaters people would have higher expectations for my understanding of dark arts," Scorpius complained often. In highly secured containers Scorpius' father had shown him many dark artifacts not for the purpose that he would become enamored with their sinister power, but so that he could come to understand that magic is neutral, only the intentions of people can be cruel or righteous.

"Ignore them. They just want to pretend you're something you're not so they don't have to actually get to know you," Rose drawled while deeply engrossed in her textbooks. Everyone already knew that Rose Weasley was the kind of person to ace a test having never studied the material, so Albus and Scorpius made the assumption that she would hole up in the library after dinner to read just for show.  

Suddenly Albus returned to their table with a stack of books half a metre high in his arms, all of them on the subject of Hogwarts.

"Miss Weasley, Mister Malfoy," Albus greeted sarcastically, "I know our moms told us not to cause mischief when we're at school and our dads wouldn't tell us how to, but after substantial research-"

"You mean you asked Uncle Longbottom earlier," Rose interrupted.

"Substantial research," Albus enunciated with irritated emphasis, "I have come to a conclusion that will revolutionize the formative years of our education!"

"Astounding!" Scorpius exclaimed before turning to Rose, "You taught him big words!"

The two of them snickered as Albus rolled his eyes, impatient to reveal his big discovery. Suddenly a prefect approached their table and solemnly asks for Scorpius to accompany her to the headmistress' office.

"Why what's going on?" Scorpius can tell by the sympathetic look in the older student's eyes meant it could only be something of grave importance. 

"I'm sorry, I can't say right now, but it has to do with your family. You can bring your friends if you want."

Rose stood up and hugged him tightly before assuring him, "Go with Albus. I'll take your things back to your room and wait for you in the common room."

Scorpius silently agreed and allowed Albus to place his arm on Scorpius' shoulders in support as they were led to Professor Sprout's office.

"Devil's snare," the perfect told the gargoyle statue before they climbed the stairs into a spacious room containing the Headmistress and Scorpius' parents in the middle of a terse conversation.

"Mom? Dad?" Scorpius asked as he was taken into a gentle group hug. Despite their calm expressions Scorpius already began imagining the worst had happened.

His mother was first to pull away and explain, "Son, your grandfather Lucius passed away earlier this morning. He had been in fragile health since the war, but this morning he took a walk in the gardens and when he found a nest of snakes in the bushes he had a heart attack. We weren't able to get help in time to save him."

The news didn't quite shock Scorpius, his grandfather's fear of snakes became more pronounced as he got older, but his throat became hollow and several tears made their way down his face when it sunk in. Kneeling down to Scorpius' eye level he told his son that everything would be okay and that the funeral would happen Saturday so he would have the evening to pack and they would all leave together in the morning. Albus stepped outside and waited for fifteen minutes by the gargoyle statue until his friend came out of the office, having finished his family discussion. Scorpius had long since finished crying, but the silence was all Albus needed to know that he was still deeply hurt by his loss. He gently enclosed Scorpius in the circle of his arms so he could collapse into the hug and whispered to him, "Hey, I know what will help, just follow me."

Scorpius didn't care that Albus was half-dragging him up to the seventh floor, but words finally made their way to his mouth when he was placed in front of a tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. "The Room of Hidden Things? My dad said it got destroyed by fiendfyre."

"As did mine, but that's only one of the things the Room can do. Besides the fiendfyre has probably run out of fuel a long time ago. Think about something you really need right now as you walk in front of it three times."

Scorpius did so unconvinced, but when a door appeared in front of them a proud grin spread across Albus' face as Scorpius turned the handle. They walked onto a large terrace surrounded by a number of rose bushes, topiary and statues with two large couches looking out to a brilliantly starry night and a dark, shimmering coast.

"This is my family's vacation home in Nice. Everyone loved coming here," Scorpius whispered, both confused and overjoyed. 

Albus simply smiled at him as he led them towards a couch, "See? There's magic greater than destruction. We can stay here as long as you want and I'll help you pack in the morning." 

That night they just watched the stars and moon scintillating in sky as the gentle breaking of waves on the shore filled their peaceful silence. When Scorpius fell asleep next to him Albus dared not to move his friend, and spooned him from behind to keep him warm until they woke at dawn.    

 

**Author's Note:**

> Please give me your HP/HP: Next gen headcanons and I'll try to see if I can fit them in. :)


End file.
